3 simple rules of information sharing

1. Anything reusable must be in a shared location. Personal email accounts, local file folder, or someone’s head are not places where reusable information can be stored. Also the format of the information, stored in a shared location has to be readable by anyone.

2. Store only unique information, that is information that may take time to recover (results of the research, internal information, abstracts from multiple sources, etc.). But do not duplicate or link anything, that is a “Google search away”, unless it’s used so often, that it makes sense to store it in a well known location. Another exception is rare information, or information, located on the site that may disappear or change its contents (e.g. someone’s personal page, forum, etc).

3. When you run into outdated or incorrect information inside the shared repository, update it or at least mark it as such. This will save some time for others, and also will make sure that the quality of the information does not degrade over time.